Samuel J. Stone, 1866.
The Lutheran Hymnal, 473.
The Church's one foundation Is Jesus Christ, her Lord;
She is His new creation By water and the Word.
From heaven He came and sought her To be His holy bride;
With His own blood He bought her, And for her life He died.
Elect from every nation, Yet one o'er all the earth,
Her charter of salvation One Lord, one faith, one birth.
One holy name she blesses, Partakes one holy food,
And to one hope she presses, With every grace endued.
The Church shall never perish! Her dear Lord, to defend,
To guide, sustain, and cherish, Is with her to the end.
Though there be those that hate her. False sons within her pale,
Against both foe and traitor She ever shall prevail.
Though with a scornful wonder Men see her sore oppressed,
By schisms rent asunder, By heresies distressed,
Yet saints their watch are keeping; Their cry goes up, "How long?"
And soon the night of weeping Shall be the morn of song.
Mid toil and tribulation And tumult of her war
She waits the consummation Of peace forevermore,
Til with the vision glorious Her longing eyes are blest
And the great Church victorious Shall be the Church at rest.
Yet she on earth has union With God, the Three in One,
And mystic sweet communion With those whose rest is won.
O blessed heavenly chorus! Lord, save us by your grace
That we, like saints before us, May see you face to face.
How often do we find ourselves in distress over the future of the church! Our values seem overthrown everywhere, the childlike faith in Christ’s promises almost extinct, regard for His word and sacraments a remnant of medieval times, commitment to the pure doctrine and confession the pursuit of the antiquated intolerant, love for the liturgy an eccentricity.
As we look around, religious organizations seem to thrive on shallow messages, disposable music and entertaining worship. The “church” becomes more about us than about Him: what we do to attract and retain the crowds, what we feel while we’re together, what kind of services we get out of the institution.
Penned by Anglican minister Samuel Stone to catechise his South African parish, the words of this hymn teach and confess what we must believe according to Holy Scripture – the church rests on one foundation, the Lord Jesus Christ, who died to make her alive. What a comfort to be reminded that the church shall never perish, for her Lord defends her from all evil, both from within and from without.
May the Lord strengthen His church that she may never tire of being faithful, and that the roaring of the enemy may never scatter her away from the blessed union with the triune God and the mystic communion with those who finished their course. Then, saved by God’s grace, the church will rest at last, triumphant, seeing not with the eyes of faith, but with her very own eyes the heavenly Bride shall in unquenchable joy contemplate her Beloved’s face.
Let us pray:
1. Lord, keep us steadfast in Thy Word;
Curb those who fain by craft and sword
Would wrest the Kingdom from Thy Son
And set at naught all He hath done.
For Thou art Lord of lords alone;
Defend Thy Christendom that we
May evermore sing praise to Thee.
Send peace and unity on earth.
Support us in our final strife
And lead us out of death to life. Amen.
(Martin Luther, 1541)
